Cover not available
Article published In:
Study Abroad Research in Second Language Acquisition and International Education
Vol. 6:2 (2021) ► pp.276–297

Investigating the impact of a semester-long study abroad program on L2 reading and vocabulary development

| Universitat de Lleida
| Universitat de Lleida

This study investigates the impact that a semester-long study abroad program has on the L2 reading and vocabulary development of a group of Catalan/Spanish bilinguals learning English as an L2 (n = 30). Another objective is to determine whether gains in participants’ vocabulary and reading – if any – are related to their initial L2 proficiency and L2 vocabulary level. Participants were administered (1) a reading text, (2) the Updated Vocabulary Levels Test, (3) a written essay, (4) a placement test and (5) an online questionnaire before and after their SA experiences. The results suggest that the sojourn was positive for participants’ reading comprehension, receptive vocabulary and lexical accuracy, but not for reading fluency, lexical fluency, lexical density and lexical sophistication. It was also found that the students’ initial L2 vocabulary and proficiency level were related to gains in receptive vocabulary and reading comprehension.

Keywords: reading, vocabulary, development, learning context
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.Literature review
    • 2.1SA and reading
    • 2.2SA and vocabulary
  • 3.Method
    • 3.1Participants
    • 3.2Instruments
      • 3.2.1Receptive and productive vocabulary
      • 3.2.2Reading comprehension and reading fluency
      • 3.2.3General proficiency
      • 3.2.4L2 use while abroad
    • 3.3Procedure
    • 3.4Data analysis procedures
  • 4.Results
  • 5.Discussion
  • 6.Conclusion
  • References
Published online: 22 September 2021
DOI logo
https://doi.org/10.1075/sar.21015.bor
References
Briggs, J.
(2015) Out-of-class language contact and vocabulary gain in a study abroad context. System, 531, 129–140. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Coleman, J. A.
(2013) Researching whole people and whole lives. In C. Kinginger (Ed.), Social and cultural aspects of language learning in study abroad (pp. 14–44). Amsterdam: John Benjamins. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Dewey, D.
(2004) A comparison of reading development by learners of Japanese in intensive and domestic immersion and study abroad contexts. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 261, 303–327. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Freed, B., Dewey, D., Segalowitz, N., & Halter, R.
(2004) The Language Contact Profile. Studies in Second Language Acquisition, 26(2), 349–356. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Grabe, W.
(2009) Reading in a second language: Moving from theory to practice. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.Google Scholar
Huffman, J.
(2014) Reading rate gains during a one-semester extensive reading course. Reading in a Foreign Language, 26(2), 17–33.Google Scholar
Ife, A., Vives-Boix, G., & Meara, P.
(2000) The impact of study abroad on the vocabulary development of different proficiency groups. Spanish Applied Linguistics, 4(1), 55–84.Google Scholar
Isabelli-García, C., Bown, J., Plews, J. L., & Dewey, D.
(2018) State-of-the-art article: Language learning and study abroad. Language Teaching, 51(4), 439–484. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Iwasaki, N.
(2007) Assessing progress towards advanced level Japanese after a year abroad: Focus on individual learners. Japanese Language and Literature, 41(2), 271–296.Google Scholar
Kinginger, C.
(2009) Language learning and study abroad: A critical reading of research. Abingdon: Palgrave Macmillan. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Koda, K.
(2005) Insights into second language reading: A cross-linguistic approach. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Kraut, R.
(2017) The development of L2 reading skills: A case study from an eight week intensive English program course. Dialogues: An Interdisciplinary Journal of English Language Teaching and Research, 1(1), 25–43. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Laufer, B., & Paribakht, T. S.
(1998) The relationship between passive and active vocabularies: Effects of language learning context. Language Learning, 48(3), 365–391. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Li, L.
(2014) Language proficiency, reading development, and learning context. Frontiers: The Interdisciplinary Journal of Study Abroad, 241, 73–92. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Llanes, À., & Muñoz, C.
(2009) A short stay abroad: Does it make a difference? System, 37(3), 353–365. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
MacWhinney, B.
(2000) The CHILDES project: Tools for analyzing talk. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.Google Scholar
McLean, S., & Rouault, G.
(2017) The effectiveness and efficiency of extensive reading at developing reading rates. System, 701, 92–106. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Milton, J.
(2009) Measuring second language vocabulary acquisition. Bristol: Multilingual Matters. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Milton, J., & Meara, P.
(1995) How periods abroad affect vocabulary growth in a foreign language. ITL Review of Applied Linguistics, 107(8), 17–34. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Mitchell, R., Tracy-Ventura, N., & McManus, K.
(2017) Anglophone students abroad: Identity, social relationships and language learning. London: Routledge. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Nation, P.
(2001) Learning vocabulary in another language. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Pérez-Vidal, C., & Barquin, E.
(2014) Comparing progress in writing after formal instruction and study abroad. In C. Pérez-Vidal (Ed.), Language acquisition in study abroad and formal instruction contexts (pp. 217–234). Amsterdam: John Benjamins.Google Scholar
Pizziconi, B.
(2013) Japanese vocabulary development in and beyond study abroad: The timing of the year abroad in a language degree curriculum. The Language Learning Journal, 45(2), 133–152. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Readability Test tool
(2021) Flesh-Kincaid. Retrieved on 22 June 2021 from [URL]
Rodríguez Prieto, J. P.
(2019) The long-term impact of a study trip abroad on the acquisition of regional Spanish vocabulary incidentally. Revista Nebrija de Lingüística Aplicada a la Enseñanza de Lenguas, 131, 166–181.Google Scholar
Sanz, C.
(2014) Contributions of study abroad research to our understanding of SLA processes and outcomes: The SALA Project, an appraisal. In C. Pérez-Vidal (Ed.), Language acquisition in study abroad and formal instruction contexts (pp. 1–13). Amsterdam: John Benjamins. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Schmitt, N.
(2010) Researching vocabulary: A vocabulary research manual. Abingdon: Palgrave MacMillan. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Serrano, R., Tragant, E., & Llanes, À.
(2012) A longitudinal analysis of the effects of one year abroad. The Canadian Modern Language Review, 681, 138–163. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Taillefer, G. F.
(2005) Foreign language reading and study abroad: Cross-cultural and cross-linguistic questions. The Modern Language Journal, 891, 503–528. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Tracy-Ventura, N.
(2017) Combining corpora and experimental data to investigate language learning during residence abroad: A study of lexical sophistication. System, 711, 35–45. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Watson, J. R., & Ebner, G.
(2018) Language-learning strategy use by learners of Arabic, Chinese, and Russian during study abroad. In C. Sanz & A. Morales-Front (Eds.), The Routledge handbook of study abroad research and practice (pp. 226–244). New York, NY: Routledge. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Webb, S., Sasao, Y., & Balance, O.
(2017) The updated vocabulary levels test: Developing and validating two new forms of the VLT. ITL International Journal of Applied Linguistics, 168(1), 33–69. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Zaytseva, V.
(2016) Vocabulary acquisition in study abroad and formal instruction: An investigation on oral and written lexical development (Unpublished doctoral dissertation). Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona.
Zaytseva, V., Miralpeix, I., & Pérez-Vidal, C.
(2019a) Because words matter: Investigating vocabulary development across contexts and modalities. Language Teaching Research, 25(2), 162–184. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
(2019b) ESL written development at home and abroad: Taking a closer look at vocabulary. International Journal of Bilingual Education and Bilingualism. DOI logoGoogle Scholar
Zaytseva, V., Pérez-Vidal, C., & Miralpeix, I.
(2018) Vocabulary acquisition during study abroad: A comprehensive review of the research. In C. Sanz & A. Morales-Front (Eds.), The Routledge handbook of study abroad research and practice (pp. 210–224). London: Routledge.Google Scholar